Charged particle microscopes conventionally include an array of analytical instruments that allow for analysis for samples. The analytical instruments allow for, in general, imaging, elemental analysis, and physical characterization of samples. For example, secondary electrons emitted from a sample may be used to form an image of the sample, and x-rays emitted from a sample due to irradiation by electrons or ions are used for elemental analysis. For physical characterization, spectroscopic techniques may be used to measure various characteristics of a sample, such as band gap properties and phonon energies. One technique for performing the physical characterization includes electron energy loss spectroscopy (EELS). EELS may allow analysis of electrons over a range of energies after having passed through a sample, and peaks at various energies in the range may provide information about the sample. Conventional EELS may be limited in resolution. While previous attempts have been made to overcome such a limitation, those attempts have been either difficult to implement or not as successful as desired. As such, improvements to EELS resolution is desired.
Like reference numerals refer to corresponding parts throughout the several views of the drawings.